Heat-not-burn tobacco matrix for preventing cut tobacco from falling and application thereof

ABSTRACT

The present invention provides a heat-not-burn tobacco matrix for preventing cut tobacco from falling and an application thereof. The tobacco matrix is formed by disorderly mixing expanded cut tobacco, formula leaf group cut tobacco and/or a tobacco sheet and then rolling, and a density of the tobacco matrix is 0.25 g/cm3 to 0.70 g/cm3.

BACKGROUND Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of novel tobacco products,and more particularly, to a heat-not-burn tobacco matrix for preventingcut tobacco from falling and an application thereof.

Description of Related Art

The research and development of heat-not-burn cigarette products is ahot spot in the tobacco industry at present. Different from traditionalcigarettes, the heat-not-burn cigarettes designed with an idea of“heat-not-burn” can heat tobacco leaves or tobacco materials just enoughto release flavor, without igniting the tobacco leaves or the tobaccomaterials. In general, under normal circumstances, a sucking temperatureof the traditional cigarette is as high as 900° C., and a plurality ofpotentially harmful substances (HPHCs) are produced by burning,pyrolysis and thermal synthesis of the tobacco leaves or the tobaccomaterials under high temperature conditions, while a sucking temperatureof the heat-not-burn cigarette is below 400° C., which can reduce theproduction of HPHCs during burning. According to the heat-not-burncigarette, compositions of a tobacco matrix are heated by heat of aheating device mainly through the cooperation of the tobacco matrix andthe heating device, to generate aerosol for sucking. When the tobaccomatrix and the heating device are cooperated for use, the tobacco matrixneeds to be inserted into a heating cavity of the heating device, andthe tobacco matrix needs to be separated from the heating device afterthe tobacco matrix is heated and sucked. Plugging and unplugging of theheating device often lead to cut tobacco falling and remaining in aheater, which is not conducive to cleaning and subsequent use of theheater, and also affects environmental sanitation. At present, a metalmesh cover is wrapped outside cigarette paper to prevent cigarette ashof the traditional cigarette from falling, but this operation is notsuitable for low-temperature not-burn cigarettes. Wrapping the meshcover outside the cigarette paper cannot prevent the cut tobacco fromfalling when the heating device is plugged into and out from the tobaccomatrix, and the metal mesh cover can also cause friction damage betweenthe tobacco matrix and the heating device. To prevent the tobacco matrixfrom falling during plugging and unplugging, a patent which applicationnumber is CN107205494A discloses a patent technology of extractor toprevent tobacco from falling into a heating cavity, but it istroublesome to operate the extractor and then take out cut tobacco eachtime after the extractor is used, and it is also necessary to clean upresidual cut tobacco falling into the extractor. What is expected in theart is to solve the problem that the cut tobacco falls in the process ofplugging and unplugging by improving the tobacco matrix itself.

SUMMARY

The present invention aims to overcome the defect of cut tobacco fallingin the prior art, and provide a heat-not-burn tobacco matrix forpreventing the cut tobacco from falling.

An objective of the present invention is to provide a heat-not-burncigarette which contains the heat-not-burn tobacco matrix for preventingcut tobacco from falling.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide an applicationmethod of the heat-not-burn cigarette.

The above-mentioned objectives of the present invention are achieved bythe following technical solutions.

A heat-not-burn tobacco matrix for preventing cut tobacco from falling,wherein the tobacco matrix is formed by disorderly mixing expandedtobacco, formula leaf group cut tobacco and/or a tobacco sheet and thenrolling, and a density of the tobacco matrix is 0.25 g/cm³ to 0.65g/cm³.

The expanded cut tobacco is added to the tobacco matrix as a filler, anda disorder intertwining degree of the expanded tobacco matrix isincreased through the disorderly mixing of the expanded tobacco andother tobacco constituents, so that the whole tobacco matrix canmaintain an overall stability during plugging and unplugging processesof a heater, which plays a good supporting role for the tobacco matrix,and effectively reduces a fall-out rate of the cut tobacco duringplugging and unplugging. Moreover, the addition of the expanded tobaccocan also adjust a filling rate of the whole tobacco matrix, ensure asmoothness of an air channel, and facilitate circulation and heattransfer of an aerogel formed by heating.

The density or the filling value directly shows a tightness of the cuttobacco. If the density is too high, the tobacco matrix will increase inmass and be too dense, which will easily lead to problems of “headbursting” of the cigarette, unsmooth air flow and large resistanceduring sucking. If the density is too low, an interaction force betweenthe constituents is not enough, which will easily lead to cut tobaccofalling.

For an appropriate density, it also needs to consider a stable internalstructure when a heating element is inserted into the cut tobacco, andthe cut tobacco is ensured to contact with the heating element as muchas possible through the extrusion of the heating element, so as toimprove a heat transfer efficiency. Meanwhile, the extrusion of theheating element enables the tobacco matrix to provide a proper air flowpath and ventilation, and the structure of the tobacco can stillmaintain a stable shape after heating and baking.

Preferably, a moisture mass percentage of the tobacco matrix is 5.0% to12.5%.

In a specific tobacco matrix, the tobacco matrix may have a density of0.25 g/cm³ and a moisture mass percentage of 10.5%, a density of 0.45g/cm³ and a moisture mass percentage of 11.5%, or a density of 0.65g/cm³ and a moisture mass percentage of 9.5%.

The moisture of the cut tobacco has an important influence on sensorycharacteristics, brittleness and elasticity of the cut tobacco, and moreimportantly, on a processing performance thereof, and a moisture of acertain constituent is controlled to a level of 11.5% to 12.5% lowerthan that of a traditional cigarette.

Preferably, at least one of the three constituents of the tobacco matrixis controlled at 5.0% to 11.0%, which not only regulates the overallmoisture of the tobacco matrix, but also adjusts overall physicalcharacteristics of the tobacco matrix, thus facilitating machineprocessing. The moisture and processing performance will not besignificantly affected. Moreover, the brittleness is increased and astructure stability of the disordered tobacco is ensured.

Preferably, a mass of the expanded tobacco is 5% to 40% of a total massof the tobacco matrix.

Preferably, the mass of the expanded tobacco is 15% to 30% of the totalmass of the tobacco matrix.

Due to the large losses of aroma components in the preparation processof the expanded cut tobacco and thus taste while sucking is bland, theinventors found through continuous exploration that a sucking sense ofthe tobacco matrix can be fully guaranteed, and an effect of preventingthe cut tobacco from falling can also be well achieved when an additionamount of the expanded cut tobacco is 15% to 30%.

Preferably, a filling value of the expanded tobacco is 4.5 cm³/g to 7.5cm³/g, and a whole cut rate of the expanded cut tobacco is 70% to 90%.For example, the filling value may be 7.12 cm³/g, 4.88 cm³/g, 6.21 cm³/gor 6.07 cm³/g; and the whole cut rate may be 70%, 75%, 80%, 83%, 85% or87%.

The filling value of the expanded tobacco is an important index of anexpansion effect, and a high filling rate can directly improve anoverall filling rate of the tobacco matrix; the whole cut rate is a mainindex of the expanded tobacco structure, which can effectively guaranteea supporting stiffness of the expanded tobacco to the tobacco substrate.A certain whole cut rate is also beneficial to the improvement of anintertwining degree between the expanded tobacco and the tobacco sheet,and can well reduce a fall-out rate of the cut tobacco.

Preferably, the filling value of the expanded cut tobacco is 6.5 cm³/gto 7.5 cm³/g, and the whole cut rate of the expanded cut tobacco is 83%to 90%.

Preferably, a size of the expanded tobacco is greater than or equal to1.0 mm. The expanded tobacco is broken cut tobacco when the size of theexpanded tobacco is less than 1.0 mm. The broken cut tobacco cannotsupport the tobacco matrix well, and will affect the smoothness of theair channel of the whole tobacco matrix and increase a suckingresistance.

The length of the cut tobacco affects a bending degree and smoothprocessing. If the cut tobacco is too long, the density of the cuttobacco will be uneven, and “loose-end” or “bamboo joint cigarette” willappear. An appropriate length has great influence on the processingperformance of the tobacco matrix. This constituent with appropriatelength may be any one or two of the formula leaf group cut tobacco andthe tobacco sheet. Considering that the manufacturing methods andphysical properties of each constituent are quite different,constituents with large elasticity and overlength are not suitable forthe heat-not-burn tobacco matrix, and the length needs to be selectedwith reference to other physical indexes.

For various constituents of the tobacco, the length herein also refersto a size at the largest or widest point.

Preferably, the expanded tobacco is expanded cut tobacco and/or expandedcut stem.

Preferably, the expanded tobacco is the expanded cut tobacco. Theexpanded cut tobacco is superior to the expanded cut stem in aroma andsucking quality, and a whole cut rate and an expansion size of theexpanded cut tobacco are also greater than that of the expanded cutstem; meanwhile, the expanded cut tobacco is superior to ordinary cuttobacco in space filling rate, coke reduction and harm reduction, whichcan further improve a sucking sensory performance of the tobacco matrix.Therefore, the expanded cut tobacco is preferred.

Preferably, a mass of the formula leaf group cut tobacco is 0% to 95% ofa total mass of the tobacco matrix.

Preferably, a mass of the tobacco sheet is 0% to 95% of a total mass ofthe tobacco matrix.

Preferably, a size of the tobacco sheet is 0.1 mm to 0.3 mm inthickness, 2 mm to 30 mm in length, and 1 mm to 2 mm in width.

The tobacco sheet may be prepared by a dry process, a rolling processand a paper-making process, wherein a two-step approach is employed inthe paper-making process to prepare the tobacco sheet, in which tobaccoraw materials are extracted first, then the paper-making process isemployed to prepare a solid phase into a tobacco sheet, a liquid phaseis concentrated and coated on the tobacco sheet, and then the obtainedtobacco sheet is shredded into the final tobacco sheet. Controlling alength and a width of the tobacco sheet is beneficial to intertwiningbetween the tobacco sheet and the expanded cut tobacco, and furtherimproves a stiffness and a spatial stability, which is not onlybeneficial to increase an air flow channel, but also can reduce afall-out rate of the cut tobacco.

Preferably, a tobacco extract, an atomizing agent and an aroma componentare loaded on the formula leaf group cut tobacco and/or the tobaccosheet and/or the expanded tobacco.

The present invention further protects a heat-not-burn cigarette whichcontains the heat-not-burn tobacco matrix. The heat-not-burn cigaretteincludes a mouth contact section, a cooling section and a heat-not-burntobacco matrix section, wherein the heat-not-burn tobacco matrix sectionis the heat-not-burn tobacco matrix according to the present invention.

The present invention further protects an application method of theheat-not-burn cigarette, which includes the following steps: insertingthe heat-not-burn cigarette into a heating element for fixed heating,sucking, rotating for at least 30 degrees after sucking, and pulling outthe heat-not-burn cigarette.

The heat-not-burn cigarette according to the present invention ispreferably used in cooperation with a corresponding heater, and theheater specifically include a heating element and a fixing seat for theheating element, a sleeve, a control element and a housing, as well as acigarette insertion opening, a vent hole and a power switch on thehousing, wherein the sleeve, the heating element and the cigaretteinsertion opening form a heating cavity of the tobacco matrix. The airflow enters the heater and the cigarette through the vent holes, thecigarette is inserted into the sleeve through the cigarette insertionopening and receives heat from the heating element, and the sleeve isprovided with a positioning piece, so that the heat-not-burn tobaccomatrix can receive the heat of the heating element to the maximumextent.

The specific operation during use is as follows:

(1) inserting the heat-not-burn cigarette into the heating cavitythrough the cigarette insertion opening and contacting with thepositioning piece;

(2) pressing the power switch to start heating, so that the heat of theheating element heats the heat-not-burn tobacco matrix for people tosuck; and

(3) rotating for at least 30 degrees after sucking, and pulling out theheat-not-burn cigarette.

The root cause why the cut tobacco does not fall off lies in stablestructure and moderate strength thereof. Even if a heating rod isinserted, the structure can be guaranteed to be stable, and an extrusioneffect of the heating rod can make an internal shape not changeobviously after heating.

Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the followingbeneficial effects.

(1) According to the heat-not-burn cigarette of the present invention,the expanded tobacco is disorderly mixed and intertwined with othertobacco constituents, so that a good supporting effect is achieved onthe tobacco matrix, an overall stability of the whole tobacco matrix isensured, and a cut tobacco adjusting rate is effectively reduced.

(2) According to the heat-not-burn cigarette of the present invention,by controlling the density of the tobacco matrix, on one hand, astructure stability is guaranteed, and on the other hand, a filling rateof the whole tobacco matrix is adjusted, a smoothness of an air channelis guaranteed, and circulation of an aerogel formed by heating and heattransfer are facilitated.

(3) According to the heat-not-burn cigarette of the present invention, asmoothness of the air channel and a good sucking sensory property of thetobacco matrix are ensured by compatibility and performance cooperationof the constituents.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will be further described below with reference tothe specific embodiments, but the embodiments are not intended to limitthe present invention in any form. Unless otherwise indicated, thereagents, methods, and devices employed in the present invention areroutine reagents, methods, and devices in the art.

The reagents and materials used in the present invention arecommercially available unless otherwise stated.

Embodiment 1

A heat-not-burn tobacco matrix for preventing cut tobacco from falling,wherein the tobacco matrix was formed by disorderly mixing expandedtobacco, formula leaf group cut tobacco and/or tobacco sheet and thenrolling, a density of the tobacco matrix was 0.25 g/cm³, and a moisturecontent of the tobacco matrix was 10.5%.

Embodiment 2

A heat-not-burn tobacco matrix for preventing cut tobacco from falling,wherein the tobacco matrix was formed by disorderly mixing expandedtobacco, formula leaf group cut tobacco and/or tobacco sheet and thenrolling, a density of the tobacco matrix was 0.65 g/cm³, and a moisturecontent of the tobacco matrix was 9.5%.

Embodiments 3 to 9

A heat-not-burn tobacco matrix for preventing cut tobacco from falling,wherein the tobacco matrix was formed by disorderly mixing expandedtobacco, formula leaf group cut tobacco and/or tobacco sheet and thenrolling, a density of the tobacco matrix was 0.45 g/cm³, a moisturecontent of the tobacco matrix was 8%, a mass of the tobacco sheet was50% of a total mass of the tobacco matrix, and a size of the expandedtobacco was greater than or equal to 1.0 mm.

See Table 1 for specific parameters of the tobacco sheet and theexpanded cut tobacco.

TABLE 1 Expanded cut tobacco Tobacco sheet Whole Filling cut Mass Thick-Serial value rate fraction ness Length Width number (cm³/g) (%) (%)Category (mm) (mm) (mm) Embodi- 7.12 83 15 Expanded 0.1 2 1 ment cut 3tobacco Embodi- 7.12 85 30 Expanded 0.3 15 2 ment cut 4 tobacco Embodi-4.88 87 15 Expanded 0.1 2 1 ment cut 5 stem Embodi- 4.88 87 30 Expanded0.3 15 2 ment cut 6 stem Embodi- 6.21 70 15 Ordinary 0.1 2 1 ment cut 7tobacco Embodi- 6.07 75 30 Ordinary 0.3 15 2 ment cut 8 tobacco Embodi-7.12 80 20 Expanded 0.2 20 1.5 ment cut 9 tobacco Embodi- 4.88 87 5Expanded 0.1 2 1 ment cut 10 stem Embodi- 4.88 87 40 Expanded 0.1 2 1ment cut 11 stem

Result Detection

400 tobacco matrixes mentioned above were prepared, and a suckingexperiment was carried out with the cooperation of a heater.

A specific sucking experiment was as follows:

(1) inserting the heat-not-burn cigarette into the heating cavitythrough the cigarette insertion opening and contacting with thepositioning piece;

(2) pressing a power switch to start heating, so that the heat of theheating element heated the heat-not-burn tobacco matrix for people tosuck; and

(3) rotating for at least 30 degrees after sucking, and pulling out theheat-not-burn cigarette.

A fall-out rate of the cut tobacco after heating and sucking wasevaluated, wherein a score of 5 referred to that no cut tobacco fell outbasically; a score of 4 referred to that a small amount of cut tobaccofell out; a score of 3 referred to that part of the cut tobacco fell outobviously; a score of 2 referred to a large number of cut tobacco fellout; and a score of 1 referred to that all the cut tobacco fell outbasically.

TABLE 2 Serial Evaluation of fall-out Sensory number of cut tobaccoevaluation Embodiment 1 4.5 8 Embodiment 2 5 8 Embodiment 3 5 9Embodiment 4 5 9.5 Embodiment 5 5 9 Embodiment 6 4 8.5 Embodiment 7 4 8Embodiment 8 4 8.5 Embodiment 9 4 8 Embodiment 10 4.5 8 Embodiment 11 48

A method in ISO standard 6565:2002 was used to measure the suckingresistance. It should be noted that, when testing the suckingresistance, measurement results of cigarettes inserted into the heatingcavity of the heater are as shown in Table 3.

TABLE 3 Serial Sucking number resistance (kPa) Embodiment 1 0.251Embodiment 2 0.445 Embodiment 3 0.321 Embodiment 4 0.283 Embodiment 50.246 Embodiment 6 0.346 Embodiment 7 0.575 Embodiment 8 0.484Embodiment 9 0.535 Embodiment 10 0.433 Embodiment 11 0.258

COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 1

A heat-not-burn tobacco matrix was formed by rolling tobacco sheet,wherein the tobacco sheet were the same as those in Embodiment 1, with athickness of 0.1 mm, a length of 2 mm and a width of 1 mm. A score of afall-out rate of the cut tobacco after sucking was 4, and a suckingresistance was 0.935 kPa.

COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 2

A heat-not-burn tobacco matrix was formed by disorderly mixing tobaccosheet and expanded cut tobacco and then rolling, wherein the tobaccosheet were the same as those in Embodiment 1, with a thickness of 0.1mm, a length of 2 mm and a width of 1 mm. A fill-rate of the expandedcut tobacco was 7.12 cm³/g, a whole cut rate of the expanded cut tobaccowas 83%, and a mass fraction of the expanded cut tobacco was 5%. A scoreof a fall-out rate of the cut tobacco after sucking was 3, and a suckingresistance was 0.845 kPa.

COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 3

A heat-not-burn tobacco matrix was formed by disorderly mixing tobaccosheet and expanded cut tobacco and then rolling, wherein the tobaccosheet were the same as those in Embodiment 1, with a thickness of 0.1mm, a length of 2 mm and a width of 1 mm. A fill-rate of the expandedcut tobacco was 7.12 cm³/g, a whole cut rate of the expanded cut tobaccowas 83%, and a mass fraction of the expanded cut tobacco was 50%. Ascore of a fall-out rate of the cut tobacco after heating and suckingwas 5, and a sucking resistance was 0.445 kPa, but the heat-not-burntobacco matrix had a very poor sucking taste and bland aroma.

From the foregoing embodiments and comparative examples, it can be seenthat the tobacco matrix formed by rolling the tobacco sheet without theexpanded cut tobacco in Comparative Example 1 is easy to fall out afterheating and sucking, which is obviously inferior to the embodiments; thecontent of the expanded cut tobacco added in Comparative Example 2 istoo low, and the phenomenon of the cut tobacco falling out after heatingand sucking of the obtained tobacco matrix is also obvious, which is notas good as that of the embodiments; and the addition amount of theexpanded cut tobacco in Comparative Example 3 is too large, which cancontrol the fall-out rate of the cut tobacco well, but excessiveaddition of the expanded cut tobacco will damage overall aroma andoverall sensory evaluation of the tobacco matrix.

Obviously, the above-mentioned embodiments of the present invention aremerely examples for clearly illustrating the present invention, but arenot intended to limit the implementations of the present invention. Forthose of ordinary skills in the art, other different forms of changes orvariations can be made on the basis of the above description. It is notnecessary or possible to exhaust all the implementations here. Anymodifications, equivalent substitutions, and improvements made withinthe spirit and principle of the present invention shall all fall withinthe scope of protection claimed by the present invention.

1. A heat-not-burn tobacco matrix for preventing cut tobacco fromfalling, wherein the tobacco matrix is formed by disorderly mixing anexpanded tobacco, a formula leaf group cut tobacco and/or a tobaccosheet and then rolling, and a density of the tobacco matrix is 0.25g/cm³ to 0.70 g/cm³.
 2. The heat-not-burn tobacco matrix according toclaim 1, wherein a moisture mass percentage of the tobacco matrix is5.0% to 12.5%.
 3. The heat-not-burn tobacco matrix according to claim 2,wherein a moisture mass percentage of at least one constituent of thetobacco matrix is 5.0% to 11.0%.
 4. The heat-not-burn tobacco matrixaccording to claim 1, wherein a mass of the expanded tobacco is 5% to40% of a total mass of the tobacco matrix.
 5. The heat-not-burn tobaccomatrix according to claim 4, wherein a filling value of the expandedtobacco is 4.5 cm³/g to 7.5 cm³/g, and a whole cut rate of the expandedcut tobacco is 70% to 90%.
 6. The heat-not-burn tobacco matrix accordingto claim 5, wherein a size of the expanded tobacco is greater than orequal to 1.0 mm.
 7. The heat-not-burn tobacco matrix according to claim6, wherein the expanded tobacco is an expanded cut tobacco and/or anexpanded cut stem.
 8. The heat-not-burn tobacco matrix according toclaim 1, wherein a mass of the formula leaf group cut tobacco is 0% to95% of a total mass of the tobacco matrix.
 9. The heat-not-burn tobaccomatrix according to claim 1, wherein a mass of the tobacco sheet is 0%to 95% of a total mass of the tobacco matrix.
 10. The heat-not-burntobacco matrix according to claim 9, wherein a size of the tobacco sheetis 0.1 mm to 0.3 mm in thickness, 2 mm to 30 mm in length, and 1 mm to 2mm in width.
 11. The heat-not-burn tobacco matrix according to claim 1,wherein a tobacco extract, an atomizing agent and an aroma component areloaded on the formula leaf group cut tobacco and/or the tobacco sheetand/or the expanded tobacco.
 12. A heat-not-burn cigarette, comprisingthe heat-not-burn tobacco matrix according to claim
 1. 13. Anapplication method of the heat-not-burn cigarette according to claim 12,comprising the following steps: inserting the heat-not-burn cigaretteinto a heating element for fixed heating, sucking, rotating for at least30 degrees after sucking, and pulling out the heat-not-burn cigarette.14. A heat-not-burn cigarette, comprising the heat-not-burn tobaccomatrix according to claim
 2. 15. A heat-not-burn cigarette, comprisingthe heat-not-burn tobacco matrix according to claim
 3. 16. Aheat-not-burn cigarette, comprising the heat-not-burn tobacco matrixaccording to claim
 4. 17. A heat-not-burn cigarette, comprising theheat-not-burn tobacco matrix according to claim
 5. 18. A heat-not-burncigarette, comprising the heat-not-burn tobacco matrix according toclaim
 6. 19. A heat-not-burn cigarette, comprising the heat-not-burntobacco matrix according to claim
 7. 20. A heat-not-burn cigarette,comprising the heat-not-burn tobacco matrix according to claim 8.